# XVII explained — David Harum

> Chapter companion for David Harum by Edward Noyes Westcott.

## What happens

On December 23rd, David Harum tells John Lenox the story of the Cullom family's decline from wealth to poverty, focusing on Mrs. Cullom's struggles. He reveals that he holds a mortgage on her property and instructs John to summon her to the bank on Christmas morning, ostensibly to close the matter. John feels disgust and repugnance, suspecting a hard-hearted scheme, but David later explains how he came by the mortgage.

## Themes in this chapter

### Social Class and Community

The Cullom family's fall from 'kingpins' to poverty illustrates the fragility of social status and the community's shifting attitudes toward class.

### Horse Trading and Moral Ambiguity

David's plan to call in the mortgage on Christmas morning appears morally dubious, echoing the theme of sharp dealing and ambiguous ethics.

## Character check-ins

### David Harum

Tells John the history of the Cullom family and reveals his plan to call in Mrs. Cullom's mortgage on Christmas morning.

### John Lenox

Listens to David's story and feels disgust and repugnance at what he believes is a scheme to foreclose on Mrs. Cullom.

### Mrs. Cullom

The widow of Billy P. Cullom, who has fallen from wealth and struggles to survive; David holds a mortgage on her property.

### Billy P. Cullom

Mrs. Cullom's deceased husband, who inherited the family estate but mismanaged it and left her with little.

### Charley Cullom

Mrs. Cullom's son, who married and moved West after his mother raised a thousand dollars on her property.

### Zeke Swinney

The man from whom Mrs. Cullom originally borrowed the thousand dollars that led to David's mortgage.

## Key lines

> She has seen better days, but she's eat an' drunk sorro' mostly fer goin' on thirty year, an' darned little else good share o' the time, I reckon.

Mrs. Cullom has experienced much hardship and sorrow for nearly thirty years, with little else to sustain her.

_David describes Mrs. Cullom's long suffering._

> Int'rist's one o' them things that keeps right on nights an' Sundays.

Interest on debt accumulates continuously, without pause.

_David explains how debt grows relentlessly._

> She held onto that prop'ty of her'n like a pup to a root.

She clung to her property with great determination.

_David emphasizes Mrs. Cullom's tenacity in keeping her land._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/david_harum_se/chapters/xvii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/david_harum_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/david_harum_se/chapters